The Bulgarian national U17 team qualified for the final of the Balkan Championship in Tirana (Albania), after decisively defeating Romania 3:0 (25:20, 25:21, 25:21) in the semi-final clash. Thus, coach Ivan Stanev's boys will compete for the gold medals against Turkey, who later this evening beat Serbia 3:0 in the other semi-final.
The big hero for Bulgaria was outside hitter Milko Bagdasarov, who played another strong match and finished as the top scorer with an impressive 21 points.
The Bulgarian national team controlled the match almost the entire time. In the first set, they took a 9:6 and 14:12 lead, then extended their advantage to 21:16 and deservedly won it 25:20.
The second set also proceeded under the dictation of the "lion cubs". After a 17:11 lead, Romania's coach Marian Apostu called a timeout in an attempt to change the course of the match. Our northern neighbors managed to reduce the deficit to 18:20, but a successful block at the end of the set brought Bulgaria a 25:21 victory.
The third set was the most contested. Bulgaria started better and led 8:6, but the Romanians turned it around to 11:9 and for the first time put serious pressure on the Bulgarian team. It was then that Milko Bagdasarov led his teammates, and the national team regained the initiative, passed through 16:15 and gradually imposed their will to close the set 25:21 and make the final score 3:0.
In the final, Bulgaria will have the opportunity to take revenge on Turkey. The two teams already met in the preliminary group, when the Turks won 3:2 (25:19, 25:21, 16:25, 21:25, 15:11), after the Bulgarian national team overcame a two-set deficit but dramatically lost in the tie-break.
Bulgaria reached the final after finishing second in Group B with a dramatic loss to Turkey and a decisive victory over Kosovo. An interesting fact is that Ivan Stanev's squad also includes the other new addition to VC Neftochimic 2010 - Veli Sezgin.
The final pits the two strongest teams in the tournament against each other and provides an excellent opportunity for the young Bulgarian national players not only to win the Balkan title but also to get revenge on Turkey for the only defeat they have suffered so far in Tirana.

photo:balkanvolleyball.org